2017’s Best & Worst States for Teen Drivers

Jun 13, 2017 | Richie Bernardo, Senior Writer

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Getting a driver’s license is considered a rite of passage in American culture. But this exciting coming-of-age has instead become a death sentence for thousands of teens each year. Motor-vehicle accidents continue to be the leading cause of death among the population aged 16 to 19, which also happens to be the age group with the highest risk of crashes.

And the financial implications are staggering. Although 15- to 19-year-olds made up only 7 percent of the population in 2013, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, they racked up 11 percent of all costs resulting from motor-vehicle injuries. That’s not counting the costs of auto maintenance, insurance premiums, possible traffic citations and other vehicular incidents — expenses that can pile up over time.

To help parents ensure their teens’ safety while also safeguarding their finances, WalletHub analyzed the teen-driving environment in each of the 50 states using a collection of 21 key metrics. Our data set ranges from number of teen driver fatalities to average cost of car repairs to presence of impaired-driving laws. Read on for our findings, expert commentary and a full description of our methodology.

Ask the Experts

Although teens are responsible for their own actions, parents shoulder much of the emotional and financial consequences when things go south. And in areas where teen deaths resulting from car crashes are most prevalent, it’s up to lawmakers to implement programs and policies that are aimed at reducing those numbers. For additional insight and advice, we asked a panel of experts to share their thoughts on the following key questions:

What tips do you have for parents of teen drivers?

What is the biggest risk that teen drivers face?

What tips do you have for minimizing the costs (insurance, etc.) associated with having a teen driver in the household?

Should we increase the age at which an individual is eligible for a license to 18?

Shea Riggsbee Denning

Professor of Public Law and Government in the School of Government at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

What tips do you have for parents of teen drivers?

Parents should log as many supervised driving hours as possible. Experts say most novice drivers don’t have enough practical experience behind the wheel when they are first licensed. So let your teenager drive -- even when the weather is bad, it is dark, traffic is heavy, the road is an interstate, or the road is rural. New drivers need to experience the situations and events that may occur only rarely, but that require an appropriate response from a driver to avoid a crash. Experts say that while some teen crashes do result from risky or careless behavior, most result from inexperience.

Safety equipment also helps. Wearing a seatbelt remains the best and cheapest way to prevent injuries from a vehicle crash. Teens also should drive the safest, which usually means the newest vehicle a family owns. You want your teen behind the wheel of the car with side airbags and crash avoidance systems.

What is the biggest risk that teen drivers face?

Obviously, the risk that every parent fears most is the fatal crash. After that is the nonfatal injury crash. The good news is that studies have shown that the crash risk decreases dramatically after drivers log about 1,000 miles of unsupervised driving. The bad news is that no one has come up with a way for new drivers to log those first thousand miles without incurring risk.

Should we increase the age at which an individual is eligible for a license to 18?

Actually, the research shows that if we really want to decrease risk, we should wait to license people until they are around 35. That is obviously not realistic. An interim measure might be impose a graduated licensing program for all drivers under 21. The Governors Highway Safety Association has recommended that approach, which has been adopted by at least one state -- New Jersey.

What should policymakers do to increase the safety of teen drivers?

Researchers at the University of North Carolina’s Center for the Study of Young Drivers have recommended one relatively simple measure: Require high school students to remain on campus during the lunch hour. Another recommendation is that high schools start later, at 8:45 a.m. rather than 7:30 a.m. The Center proposes this as a way to reduce drowsy driving crashes, though it notes that studies examining the relationship between school start times and teen driver crashes have been mixed.

Richard Peter

Assistant Professor of Finance in the Henry B. Tippie College of Business at The University of Iowa

What is the biggest risk that teen drivers face?

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2,333 teens in the U.S. ages 16-19 were killed, and 221,313 were treated in emergency departments for injuries suffered in motor vehicle crashes in 2015. Drivers age 15 to 20 accounted for 9% of all drivers involved in fatal crashes in 2015 and 12% of all drivers involved in police-reported crashes. In contrast, young drivers accounted for only 5.4% of total drivers in the United States (Insurance Information Institute). The numbers speak a very clear picture: Teen drivers are more at risk than other drivers.

What are the main reasons for that? Teens are more likely to underestimate dangerous situations or not be able to recognize hazardous situations. They are also more likely to make critical decision errors that lead to serious crashes. Similarly, they are more likely to speed and to allow shorter headways. Immaturity and lack of experience are responsible for these behaviors. According to State Farm, other risk factors are night driving and the presence of other teens in the vehicle. In 2014, 50% of teen deaths from motor vehicle crashes occurred between 3 p.m. and midnight and 53% occurred on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday.

Another factor is drinking and seat belt use. In 2014, 17% of drivers aged 16 to 20 involved in fatal motor vehicle crashes had a BAC of .08% or higher. In a national survey conducted in 2015, 20% of teens reported that, within the previous month, they had ridden with a driver who had been drinking alcohol. Among students who drove, 8% reported having driven after drinking alcohol within the same one-month period. Compared with other age groups, teens have among the lowest rates of seat belt use. In 2015, only 61% of high school students reported they always wear seat belts when riding with someone else

What are policymakers doing to increase the safety of teen drivers?

Every state has a graduated driver license (GDL) law that includes a three-phase program to help teens to develop more mature driving attitudes and gain experience behind the wheel. In 1996, Florida became the first state to enact a GDL law. North Dakota’s law, the last to be enacted, went into effect January 1, 2012.

Such graduated licensing as defined by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration consists of three stages. Stage 1 (learners permit): requirements and recommendations include a vision test, a road knowledge test, driving accompanied by a licensed adult, seatbelt use by all vehicle occupants, a zero BAC level, and six months with no crashes or convictions for traffic violations. Stage 2 (intermediate license): includes the completion of Stage 1, a behind-the-wheel road test, advanced driver education training, driving accompanied by a licensed adult at night, and 12 consecutive months with no crashes or convictions for traffic offenses before reaching Stage 3 (full license).

Are GDL laws effective? The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) said in May 2012 that the death rate fell 68% for 16-year old drivers from 1996 to 2010. It fell 59%, 52% and 47% for 17-, 18- and 19-year olds, respectively, during the same period. The IIHS attributes these declines to the adoption of GDL laws. So the answer is a very clear yes.

What should policymakers do to increase the safety of teen drivers? For example, should we increase the age at which an individual is eligible for a license to 18?

I do not think that this is a good idea. I am originally from Germany, which recently went the opposite direction. When I received my license, the legal driving age was 18. Once I had it, I could drive around all by myself without anybody else having to be in the car. Several years ago, so-called “accompanied driving” was introduced where 17-year olds can get a license but they can only drive with another family member in the car who is at least 30 years old and had his or her license for at least 5 years. So in some sense, Germany has recently moved towards a system with a lower legal age but specifically including a one-year learning period where teens can only drive under “adult supervision.”

It is much harder to get your license in Germany than in the U.S. I have first-hand experience because I took the tests again (both the questions as well as the actual driving test) to get my license here in the States. The test questions in Germany are harder than in the U.S. and require more studying, and it is quite common that the actual driving test can take up to an hour and includes a series of non-trivial driving maneuvers. My guess would be that the portion of drivers who fails is substantially larger in Germany than in the U.S. I am not saying that this is necessarily the better system but, of course, the easier we make it to get a license, the more drivers will be on the road who might have benefitted from additional classes and practice before driving. On the other hand, for the most part it is much easier in Germany than in the States to get around without a car.

So what should we do? According to the IIHS, if every state adopted all five of the toughest GDL laws, about 500 lives could be saved and 9,500 collisions prevented each year. The five most effective laws are a minimum permit age of 16, a minimum intermediate license age of 17, at least 65 hours of supervised practice driving, restrictions on night driving that begin at 8 pm and banning all teen passengers.

What tips do you have for parents of teen drivers?

Be a good role model. Some of the factors that are known to put teen drivers at risk are also common risk factors among adults (e.g., texting while driving). Make sure you are a responsible driver and that safety is an important concern to you.

Create awareness: Take some time to discuss findings with your teen driver that highlight important risk factors. Knowledge is the key to good decision making. Mobility is an important component of personal freedom and independence but it comes at a cost. Knowing what key risk factors are can help avoid dangerous situations. The eight most important danger zones are: driver inexperience, driving with teen passengers, nighttime driving, not using seat belts, distracted driving, drowsy driving, reckless driving, and impaired driving.

Representativeness: Research in psychology and decision-making shows that people often use heuristics to arrive at their conclusions. Pointing out a recent news article from the local press about a crash involving teen drivers can help to show that this risk is actually quite real and not just a theoretical possibility that only happens to other people.

Experience is a key ingredient in traffic safety. Trying not to let your teen driver drive is actually an impediment to learning and to gathering experience with common traffic situations.

What tips do you have for minimizing the costs (insurance, etc.) associated with having a teen driver in the household?

Auto insurance premiums are determined by a variety of factors. First and foremost, they depend on the types of coverages and the amount of coverage you want. It is, in general, not a very good idea to try to save money by taking out only the minimum legal limit of liability coverage (Part A of the policy) as this would offer only very insufficient protection. It might be worthwhile to think of higher deductibles in the physical damage section (Part D) of the policy. There is some research in homeowners insurance that shows that policyholders tend to opt for lower deductibles and usually do not get enough value out of the additional coverage.

Besides coverages, other primary factors that determine the cost of automobile insurance are territory, age, gender, marital status and use of the auto. There is little one can do here because obviously it is not a good advice to get married for the sake of cheaper auto insurance premiums (this is meant to be a joke, of course).

Secondary premium factors include vehicle type, driving record and number of vehicles insured. When shopping around for a new vehicle, one can take into account how much the insurance would be for it and consider that in the purchase decision.

Finally, two more general pieces of advice. Many insurance companies offer benefits from bundling homeowners with auto insurance. Such discounts can save consumers quite some money. Also, research shows that many households do not shop around for insurance enough. Consumers have market power but only if they get several offers and also reevaluate their policies on a regular basis. It might not be the most fun activity, but one can achieve good savings.

The answer to the question is: Every insurance company will take it into account when teen drivers are on the policy, and legitimately so due to the higher crash risk. Think of it that way: Once you add a teen driver to your policy, the value of the policy increases because accident risk is larger than before. It is only fair that this will come at an additional charge. So there is nothing one can really do to reduce these costs, but there are many other ways to hunt for some savings as outlined in my other bullet points.

Pei-Sung Lin

Program Director of ITS, Traffic Operations and Safety in the Center for Urban Transportation Research (CUTR) at University of South Florida

What tips do you have for parents of teen drivers?

Be a good role model: Children learn a lot from their parents. Parents need to be good role models for their teens, avoiding speeding and using their cell phones when driving, as well as wearing seat belts.

Create a parent-teen driving agreement: Make an agreement with your teen that puts the driving rules in writing to set clear expectations and limits.

Always buckle up: Ask your teenager to always wear a seatbelt, as more than 60% teen passengers who die in a crash are not wearing one. Wearing seatbelts is the most effective way of reducing teen crash fatalities.

No speeding: Ask your teenager to follow speed limits. Excessive speed contributes to nearly 50% of crashes that result in teen fatalities.

No cell phones: Make it clear to your teen that they put down their cell phones and refrain from text messaging while driving. Distractions are a leading cause of crashes, particularly among teens. Let your teenagers know
there will be zero tolerance on this issue.

No alcohol: Drinking and driving can be deadly. Establish with your teen that there will be absolutely no drinking while driving. Teenage drivers are much more likely to die in a crash when they have a blood alcohol concentration of .08% or above. Let your teenagers know that there will zero tolerance for alcohol and/or drugs.

No extra passengers: Wherever possible, teens should avoid driving with other teenagers because that often leads to driver distraction, and distractions can lead to accidents. Playing loud music, and even talking in the car, is distracting and often results in teens taking their eyes off the road. Numerous studies have found that teens driving with other teenage passengers are more likely to engage in risky driving behavior, like speeding, tailgating, failing to yield, weaving, showing off or driving erratically.

Limit nighttime driving: Limit your teen’s amount of nighttime driving; Teen fatalities are especially high between midnight and 6 a.m., when teens should be at home.

What is the biggest risk that teen drivers face?

Inexperience: Most teenage car crashes occur because teen drivers simply lack experience. They often misjudge gaps in traffic, fail to drive the right speed for conditions, pass other vehicles, and neglect to turn safely.

Distracted driving: Teen drivers are easily distracted. Numerous studies show that distracted driving is a leading cause of serious crashes among teens.

Speeding: Teenagers tend to speed and take more risks while driving, partly due to overconfidence in their driving abilities. Speeding is one of the major causes of teen fatalities and injuries in car crashes.

Impaired driving: Teen drivers have a higher crash risk. Teenagers have many opportunities exposed to alcohols from parties and sport events. Impairment by alcohol and drugs could aggravate these risks.

Should we increase the age at which an individual is eligible for a license to 18?

Based on the data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), per mile driven, 16-year-old drivers have the highest rate of fatal crash involvement by a wide margin, followed by 17-year-old drivers. NHTSA notes that though teen driver fatalities have declined in recent years, young drivers -- particularly 16- and 17-year-olds -- are significantly over-represented in fatal crashes. Therefore, we should increase the age at which an individual is eligible for a license to 18 years old.

Reginald R. Souleyrette

Chair of the Department of Civil Engineering, Commonwealth Chair Professor of Transportation Engineering and Program Manager of Planning and Education in the Kentucky Transportation Center at University of Kentucky

What tips do you have for parents of teen drivers?

First, learn a little about risk. Risk is probability times consequence. Parents probably already understand the consequences of having their teen injured or injuring someone else, let alone the tragedy of losing one. However, few have a good idea of the probability that their teen will be involved in a crash. Never in the parents’ lifetime will their children be exposed to higher risk of crash than when they first begin driving. Make sure that you explain the risk to your teen, whether they are driving or not. Make sure you know how to reduce both consequence (speed, seat belts) and probability (distraction, substance abuse, time of day, and defensive driving), then teach them or make sure someone teaches them about it.

They may not want to hear it, and it takes practice for it to sink in, so you will probably have to be creative in your approach. Take advantage of insurance sponsored training programs, MADD and SADD programs and materials, and go with them and let them practice driving in increasingly challenging situations until they are ready.

What is the biggest risk that teen drivers face?

Since we are talking about road injury and death, I presume you mean risk factors. I have covered some of them above. Statistics are probably not reliable regarding distraction, and amount of experience is not generally listed on crash reports (age is). These are probably the two highest risk factors. Maturity is certainly a factor, as well as risk taking propensity (probably higher in young males).

What tips do you have for minimizing the costs (insurance, etc.) associated with having a teen driver in the household?

Some insurance companies offer lower rates for teens who take extensive driver training programs. Others offer discounts for monitored driving (teen-cams, GPS trackers, black box type monitors). Check with individual insurance companies. Even if you don’t get a discount, discuss these with your teen or require them in order to lower the risks mentioned above. Consider providing monetary reward to your teen -- it will probably save you money in the long run (fewer deductibles and lower rates), and more especially, lower risk of injury or worse.

Should we increase the age at which an individual is eligible for a license to 18?

If a teen does not complete extensive training, I believe we should. Even if we don’t, parents and the teens themselves should consider the proper age based on individual maturity and actual need to drive. If parent’s main concern for allowing their teens to be licensed at a lower age is convenience, they should carefully weigh the benefits against the real and increased risks mentioned previously.

What should policymakers do to increase the safety of teen drivers?

Typically, we think of legislative approaches like increasing the driving age, as you mention. Others include nighttime restrictions, number of under 18 passengers, cell phone restrictions, zero substance laws, etc. For any of these, I believe the law must be enforceable, and hopefully technology can help with that. For any of these or other legislative options, including funding driver safety programs, they should listen most carefully to qualified and unbiased advisors.

I must disclaim at this point that I do government-sponsored safety research, so the policymakers should consider my bias in that area. That said, the safety of our teens should be off-limits for politics. That is easy to say, but our elected officials have exceedingly difficult jobs, and have to make tough decisions every day on a host of issues where I am sure they are advised in a similar fashion. I would simply say, “consider the source.” If it comes down to convenience versus safety, safety has to take priority. It’s not that simple, though, for parents that have to work several jobs to make ends meet, and need the older children to drive the younger ones to their appointments and practices. However, I am sure that some of the most difficult conversations I have ever had are with parents who have lost a teen in a crash.

Madeline Brozen

Manager of the Complete Streets Initiative Program and Associate Director for External Relations of the Lewis Center and the Institute of Transportation Studies at UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs

What tips do you have for parents of teen drivers?

Set a good example all the time for your kids. Do not use your cell phone while driving -- show them you should pull over if you need to use a device while driving. Drive slowly and non-aggressively, be aware of people walking and crossing the streets. Parents often focus on observing how the teens are driving and neglect to observe and reflect on how their own driving behavior may be influencing their kids.

What is the biggest risk that teen drivers face?

Being distracted and not realizing how dangerous driving can be. I think distracted driving is now a common risk for all drivers but it likely effects teen drivers more, being that they grew up with smart phones and these highly distracting devices at their fingertips. But, the other part of the risk is that teenagers, particularly teenage boys, are more risk averse than older people. They are less likely to understand that driving fast or any poor driving behavior can affect their lives and the other people on the road. In the U.S., people drive so often, they underestimate driving risk and danger. It's important to remember that traffic safety is reaching crisis levels and that in some cities more people are killed in car crashes than are killed by guns. A car can be a dangerous weapon.

What tips do you have for minimizing the costs (insurance, etc.) associated with having a teen driver in the household?

Buy the teen driver a transit pass. Minimize the total amount they are driving by giving them incentives to drive fewer miles when they are a new driver. Maybe it's a monthly allowance for lyft/uber. Consider making them pay for the miles they are driving. People respond to price incentives and teenagers probably do so even more, being that they don't have much income at their disposal. If the teenager understands the cost of driving, for each trip, they may think more about whether they want to drive themselves every time.

Should we increase the age at which an individual is eligible for a license to 18?

Not necessarily. The results from graduated driving licenses effects on crash rates are mixed. The types of poor driving behaviors (distraction, speeding, etc.) are not necessarily going to go away just by increasing the age. And we may see more driving without a license. Putting limits on the amount or driving times in a graduated way may help as a way to ease teenage drivers into better behavior.

What should policymakers do to increase the safety of teen drivers?

Enforce traffic laws and design streets to better reflect the speed limits. These are not actions specific to teenage drivers, but to drivers as a whole. If the existing traffic laws (speeding and restrictions on electronic devices) aren't being enforced for anyone, why would a teenager want to abide by them? Currently, the amount of reported distracted driving among nearly all drivers dwarfs warnings or tickets being issued. Secondly, many streets are designed for high speeds, even if the speed limit is lower. Policymakers should work towards a safer transportation system that better signals to drivers the speed they should be traveling.

Lynne McChristian

Teaching Faculty and Executive Director of the Center for Risk Management Education & Research at Florida State University

What tips do you have for parents of teen drivers?

When teens are learning to drive, it brings an opportunity for parents to stress what they’ve done since kindergarten -- emphasizing the importance of good grades. Good students earn a discount on auto insurance, and the reason makes perfect sense. If you are responsible with your studies, the expectation is that you will be responsible on the road.

Consider a formal drivers' education course. Many schools no longer offer this curriculum, and it is well worth the investment. Sure, mom and dad have been driving for decades, but that doesn’t always make us the best teachers of the rules of the road. The structure of the course and the back-to-the-basics approach is invaluable to equip young drivers with the safety mindset.

What is the biggest risk that teen drivers face?

There are at least two big risks; a lack of driving experience and an underestimation of the risks of distracted driving. Ask a teen driver who is the most likely to be involved in a car crash and they will point to senior citizens. To that, I say look in the mirror. Drivers between age 16 and 20 have a higher crash involvement rate, by far. Here are some stats.

What tips do you have for minimizing the costs (insurance, etc.) associated with having a teen driver in the household?

First is the “good student discount.” Keep in mind that auto insurance rates are usually for a six-month period, so you may have to check in with your insurer every time the policy renews to maintain that discount. Another tip is to see if your insurer offers discounts if a teen has had formal drivers’ education courses. Additionally, insurers also offer their own teen driving safety programs online, so that is an additional incentive with an educational component.

Should we increase the age at which an individual is eligible for a license to 18?

Fewer teens are getting their licenses before age 18 these days. That’s an interesting trend, and it’s probably due to the fact that you don’t need to drive to stay connected in this time of cell phones and social media. States have enacted graduated license laws to deal with the fact that teens are more likely to be involved in car crashes. Info here.

What should policymakers do to increase the safety of teen drivers?

Policymakers in many states have passed distracted driving laws to make it a primary offense to text and drive. These laws work because they reinforce to all drivers, of any age, that driving is a privilege that demands it be a mono-task, not a multi-task. Driving is a responsibility that demands full focus. It’s not only about you; it’s about watching out for the other driver who may have missed that point.

K.M. Hunter-Zaworski

Associate Professor in the School of Civil and Construction Engineering at Oregon State University

What tips do you have for parents of teen drivers?

Be a good role model. Zero tolerance towards phone and alcohol and drugs; identify designated drivers even for family occasions; limit or remove in vehicle distractions (cleaning up the car is a good start).

Invest in driver education both classroom and in vehicle. You will get a return on your investment on your insurance rates.

Have serious conversations regarding privileges and responsibilities as a driver.

Make sure that the vehicle is road worthy, and safe and equipped with modern safety equipment such as air bags and good headlights.

Do a pre-trip inspection (show by example). Check tires, check that there is gas in the car (at least enough to reach a gas station or make your child walk there and back with a gas can).

Turn every trip into a teachable moment. Talk about difficult driving situations, make your child drive when the weather is really bad so they learn about slips, slides and skid; make your child learn how to parallel park.

What is the biggest risk that teen drivers face?

Distractions, distractions, distractions!

Teens need to know that operating a car has responsibilities.

Limit or remove entertainment systems (zero tolerance with consequences if phone is used or there is any texting).

Teach young drivers to take time and to drive defensively and politely.

What tips do you have for minimizing the costs (insurance, etc.) associated with having a teen driver in the household?

Good grades;

Professional drivers education;

Safe driving record of all family members.

Should we increase the age at which an individual is eligible for a license to 18?

Children mature at different speeds, however, graduated drivers licenses have been shown to improve safety. Increasing the age can impose hardships on families that live in rural communities.

What should policymakers do to increase the safety of teen drivers?

Increase penalties and consequences for underage DUI, texting, and not using seat belts.

Institute graduated drivers licenses.

Increase consequences for aggressive and unsafe driving.

Limit number of passengers, that are not family members, that a driver under the age of 19 can take in a vehicle.

Encourage teenagers to use public transportation, ride a bike, or walk.

Guangqing Chi

Director of the Computational and Spatial Analysis Core and Associate Professor of Rural Sociology and Demography at The Pennsylvania State University

What is the biggest risk that teen drivers face?

Texting while driving. We all know that drunk driving is dangerous. Texting while driving is five to six times dangerous as drunk driving. Eleven teens die each day as a result of texting while driving. 21% of fatal crashes involving teen drivers are due to texting while driving. Why so dangerous? Texting while driving, even if you are fast in texting or reading text messages, can easily take your eyes off roads five seconds. At a speed of 55 mph, you drive the length of a football field in five seconds. How about texting while stopped at a red light? Nope, that is still dangerous. The cognitive switch from texting or reading text messages to driving takes time, and that can get us in trouble if we are not fully aware of our surroundings.

By the way, texting while walking is also dangerous.

What should policymakers do to increase the safety of teen drivers?

Education. It is important to make the teen drivers (and all drivers) fully aware of the danger of texting while driving. Heavy smokers can resist the temptation of smoking for over ten hours on an international flight because they understand the consequence. Never text while drive.

Patrick A. Taylor

Associate Professor of Economics at Millsaps College

What tips do you have for parents of teen drivers?

Talk with teens about safe driving, they need to know parents care deeply about their children’s safety, especially while driving. Use one or more of the available technologies for monitoring how the car is being operated and be sure teens know the devices are installed. If drinking is a concern, install the breath analyzer ignition lock-out device. Ride with teens to be sure they have well learned the rules of the road and are building safe driving skills and habits. If parents know that their children drink or are likely to, be sure the teen knows parents are available to come to pick them up if they have been drinking and would be driving home afterwards. Or be sure teens know parents want them to find alternate transportation if they’ve been drinking or are with friends who have been drinking and are driving.

What is the biggest risk that teen drivers face?

I think the data show distracted driving is the biggest hazard for teen drivers. And the biggest distraction is having one or more of their friends along in the car. Using cell phones, for any purpose, are major distractors and are a factor in many accidents involving teen drivers. Even tuning the radio is dangerous. Immature driving practices of all kinds, whether distracted or not, are also big contributors to teen drivers’ accidents.

What tips do you have for minimizing the costs (insurance, etc.) associated with having a teen driver in the household?

Because insurance companies assign higher premiums to teen drives as a matter of course, due to the historically poor driving records of young drivers, there is little parents can do about the premiums per se. They can require their teenagers to earn money to pay part or all of the addition premiums to include them on parents’ policies as a condition for being able to drive. Being diligent about monitoring teens’ driving habits can keep insurance premiums from going up at least, as happens when teens are involved in any driving violation for which they are ticketed.

Should we increase the age at which an individual is eligible for a license to 18?

Yes, the driving age should be 17, at least, uniformly across the country. States might establish some conditions under which teens may get a very limited or provisional license at a younger age. My state grants limited driving privileges to teens as young as 15 under some conditions. It’s not clear whether the state does much to monitor compliance, once the teen has even technically limited driving privileges, however.

What should policymakers do to increase the safety of teen drivers?

Policy makers probably can do little to see that a particular teenager drives safely. However, there may be some helpful policy measures. Here are some suggestions. They can make sure law enforcement agencies are diligent about enforcing existing laws governing teen drivers. They can require all prospective new drivers to complete effective and thorough driver’s education programs. They can establish higher fines for teens’ driving violations. They can require some sort of community service for more serious driving violations, perhaps including working with victims of accidents caused by teen drivers. They can require teen violators to have tracking or driving dynamics monitoring devices installed on their cars. Anything policy makers can do to make poor driving, by anyone, more costly may help keep everyone on the roads safer.

Donald W. Davis

Lecturer of Finance at University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign

What tips do you have for parents of teen drivers?

The best advice I have for parents is not to buy their 16 to 18 year old their own car. Sharing a car will save easily 50% off the premium. Other than that keeping a good driving record is the best, but young drivers are going to pay considerably higher premium no matter what. Also, is always best with auto insurance to look for all the discounts available from the insurer. Parents should be prepared for "sticker shock."

What tips do you have for minimizing the costs (insurance, etc.) associated with having a teen driver in the household?

The reason teen drivers pay so much is that statistically drivers of that age have close to a one in four chance of having an accident in the first 36 months of driving. As I used to tell my clients when I was in sales, I hope you're child backs into a fire hydrant and you can laugh about it; but I have seen death on the highway at that age.

Should we increase the age at which an individual is eligible for a license to 18?

Every once in awhile there is legislative pressure to raise the driving age, but it never gets anywhere because we tend to think of driving car as a right instead of a privilege. Many states have restrictions on drivers under the age of 18 but no state has passed a law limiting driving to that age and older. Those restrictions have helped.

David Good

Associate Professor and Director of the Transportation Research Center at Indiana University

What tips do you have for parents of teen drivers?

There is a temptation for many parents to show their kids how much they love them by buying them the coolest car. Get them the safest car you can afford to have destroyed (NHTSA star ratings are a good guide). Periodically check that the car is in good working order for safety items. They often will not know what cars should and should not sound like. My son wore through the brake pads, through the metal backers and he was stopping with the caliper piston grinding into the rotors. Teach them to take care of a car. Parents need to stay involved.

No texting. No cell phones while driving (though the data here is more mixed). Have them try to play a video game and text at the same time.

What is the biggest risk that teen drivers face?

Peer pressure. The more kids in the car, the more likely something stupid will seem like a good idea at the time. This is why most graduated license programs limit the number of teen passengers.

What tips do you have for minimizing the costs (insurance, etc.) associated with having a teen driver in the household?

Don't get them an expensive car. For divorced parents with shared custody insurance can be a real challenge. Agree on an insurance company and agent and let them know the story about what car(s) the teen(s) were driving so that you don't pay insurance twice.

Should we increase the age at which an individual is eligible for a license to 18?

The data pretty clearly shows that more restrictive licensing (graduated licenses) tends to lead to fewer fatalities related to teen drivers. That just makes simple sense on the basis of exposure.

Charlie Klauer

Group Leader in the Center for Vulnerable Road User Safety at the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute

What tips do you have for parents of teen drivers?

Ride with your teen drivers. Teens drive more like experienced adults when their parents are passengers in their car than they do when they are driving alone. Riding with your teen frequently could instill safe driving habits with your teen, so ride, ride, ride with your teen driver.

What is the biggest risk that teen drivers face?

Teens are inexperienced and are on a steep learning curve to acquire the many skills required for safe driving. They need to gain experience in a wide variety of driving environments to better learn how to safely navigate these environments. Our naturalistic studies have found that the highest risk behaviors for teens include:

Speeding: Either driving above the speed limit or driving too fast for conditions.

Hazard identification/mitigation: Teens have difficulty predicting what may be hazards and how to drive to best mitigate these hazards.

Should we increase the age at which an individual is eligible for a license to 18?

I would argue that this is not a feasible solution. Mobility is an issue for the majority of our rural and suburban areas in the U.S., and teenagers have critical mobility requirements that are not met in these areas of the United States. I also believe that parents can provide critical oversight of the drivers’ education process. If we increase the licensing age to 18, parents will have less time to provide this critical oversight and guidance, which I think would be detrimental to overall safety.

What should policymakers do to increase the safety of teen drivers?

Policymakers should increase and strengthen the current graduated driver’s licensing (GDL) laws that are in place across the United States. These are proven to reduce crashes, and additional modifications to these laws will increase their overall benefit. Specifically, increase/strengthen the nighttime and passenger restrictions, increase the fines/penalties for wireless device use, and increase the fines/penalties for speeding tickets and/or crashes where speeding was a contributing factor.

Shannon C. Roberts

Assistant Professor in the Mechanical and Industrial Engineering Department at University of Massachusetts-Amherst

What tips do you have for parents of teen drivers?

Even before teens learn how to drive, it’s important for the parent to display appropriate driving behavior while the teen is their passenger. Teens will model the driving behavior of their parents: if the parent texts while driving, the teen will think that is an acceptable behavior. When teenagers are learning how to drive (with their learner’s permit), it’s important for parents to establish strong rules about how their teen is to behave in the car. In addition to following their state’s laws (e.g., no night driving, no texting while driving, no passengers under age 18), parents should also establish rules about acceptable speeds, watching for pedestrians, obeying traffic laws (e.g., making complete stops at stop signs).

What is the biggest risk that teen drivers face?

I believe the biggest risk for teenage drivers is the effect of social influence on their driving behavior. Teens want to be connected to their friends at all times, which leads to them to engage in distracting behavior while driving (e.g., responding to a text from a friend). Additionally, teens are highly influenced by having other teens as passengers in their vehicle. Teens are often willing to engage in risky behavior simply because their passenger encourages them.

What tips do you have for minimizing the costs (insurance, etc.) associated with having a teen driver in the household?

Insurance companies offer discounts if your teen has good grades or attends driver education school. In addition to these discounts, certain insurance companies offer monitoring devices (e.g., Progressive Snapshot, Liberty Mutual Right Track, Allstate Drivewise, etc.). Parents should consider installing these devices in their teen’s vehicle. It monitors the teen's driving behavior and in some cases, provides feedback about how they can improve. If the teen drives safely, it will lead to a reduction in insurance premiums.

Should we increase the age at which an individual is eligible for a license to 18?

Increasing the minimum age at which teenagers can earn their license may not lead to improved driving behavior. Generally speaking, it’s more beneficial for teens to practice safe driving and form good driving habits. Increasing the minimum age for licensure simply delays teens' practice.

What should policymakers do to increase the safety of teen drivers?

Policymakers should consider extending current graduate driver licensing (GDL) laws so they are similar to the Indiana GDL program. In Indiana, drivers have restricted driving privileges until the age of 21, not just 18 as in other states.

Hamed Ahangari

Postdoctoral Researcher at University of Connecticut

What tips do you have for parents of teen drivers?

Our analysis shows that, in last decades, safety improvements for Youngsters (15-17 years old) was much better than for other age groups, especially for late teens (18-20 years old) and young adults (21-24 years old). Possibly the main reason for this achievement is the impact of the Graduated Driver Licensing (GDL) policies. Beginning in mid-1990’s, some states implemented GDL program that restrict when and with whom novices can drive. GDL restricts the conditions under which new drivers can operate in different ways and today almost all states implemented this policy. After certain conditions, almost in 17 years old, these restrictions can be lifted and the drivers can have the full car license.

We found that GDL policies have improved road safety especially for youngster (15-17 years old). Our results also revealed that devolving GDL saved more than 5000 people in the past decade. Although it seems that this policy was an efficient way to survive naive drivers, it does not show significant improvement on the safety of the subsequent age cohorts. Today, the odds of traffic death for late teens (18-20) and young adults (21-24) are more than two times higher than youngster (15-17). This recommends that we need to keep and continue some key elements of GDL policy for the late teens and young adults.

Another analysis showed that part of teens’ brain which could estimate the real impact of external risk are not fully developed before 20 years old. GDL provides a framework to cover this issue by mandating drivers to drive under supervision of a licensed driver that usually is a family member or parents. But after a short period, this restriction would be lifted and the young driver can drive under the low perception of risks.

Furthermore, our analysis showed that using seat belt saved more than 6000 lives in the past decade. Another research showed that the seat belt usage in single occupant vehicles is 15% lower compared to the other vehicles. On the other hand, seat belt use in Teens are about 5-10% lower than the national average. It means that if parents join their teens while they drive, the odds of using seat belt would increase significantly, thus the risk of road fatality would decrease substantially. Accordingly, accompanying a teen driver not only help them to improve their driving skills but also could improve their safety by parent’s supervision and increasing seat belt usage.

What is the biggest risk that teen drivers face?

We developed a conceptual framework, which explains why the risk of accident is higher for teens. It suggests that lack of driving experience, physiological and mental growth, and the ability to control car in an emergency situation are key main cause of higher risk of accident at this age cohort.

What tips do you have for minimizing the costs (insurance, etc.) associated with having a teen driver in the household?

Our findings show that having more cars in a household is coincided with higher risk of accident and traffic death. It also imposes more costs to the family. Alternatively, moving to a walk or bike friendly neighborhood give families more choices to access places than living in suburb or rural neighborhoods which are mostly auto-oriented. It also can help them to avoid cost of having more cars in their household.

Also, our findings showed that the road fatality death in bike friendly cities is much lower than their peers. For example, in largest American cities, Portland showed the highest bike commuting share. This city also is ranked among the safest cities in terms of transportation fatality outcome. We can see the same pattern in Davis, CA. Davis has had the highest rate of cycling among all American cities in the past years and the city always showed a very low road fatality rate.

Another solution to reduce auto-dependency and saving money in a family could be ride sharing. It may help families to reduce the cost of buying and operating another car in the family.

Should we increase the age at which an individual is eligible for a license to 18?

The safest developed country in terms of road fatality rate are Sweden and UK. The minimum age to hold a full car license in these countries are 17 and 18 respectively.

Our analysis revealed that implementing GDL policies helped us to save many lives in the past decade. The road fatality rate in late teens and young adults are very high compared to other developed countries. A young adult in the U.S. was a stunning five times more likely to experience a road traffic fatality than a young adult in the Switzerland. It indicated that we need to explore further the causes and potential solutions to this under-performance. To find an efficient solution, we can potentially learn from implementing GDL policy for youngster. At least, we can extend some key element of GDL for all under 20 or 24 years old drivers.

What should policymakers do to increase the safety of teen drivers?

Extending some aspects of GDL policies and restrictions for all late teens and young adults.

Another finding of our study reveals that, the odds of traffic death in urban areas with higher population density is lower than other jurisdictions. By living in these areas, families can encourage their children to use these active modes of transportation which have more health benefits than road safety for them. Policy makers also can promote these active modes and can provide a better bike and walking facilities to attract more cyclist and save more lives.

Setting a tighter regulation for seat belt use. We need to provide a road map to transfer all states from a secondary seat belt law to primary seat belt law (secondary offense law means that a police officer cannot stop and ticket a driver for the sole offense of not wearing a seat belt).

Methodology

In order to determine the best and worst states for teen drivers, WalletHub analyzed the teen-driving environment in the 50 states across three key dimensions: 1) Safety, 2) Economic Environment and 3) Driving Laws.

We evaluated those dimensions using 21 relevant metrics, which are listed below with their corresponding weights. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the most favorable conditions for teen drivers. For metrics marked with an asterisk (*), the square root of the population was used to calculate the “Number of Residents” in order to avoid overcompensating for minor differences across states.

We then calculated the total score for each state based on its weighted average across all metrics and used the resulting scores to construct our final ranking.

Sources: Data used to create this ranking were collected from the U.S. Census Bureau, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, The Road Information Program, CarMD, InsuranceQuotes, the Governors Highway Safety Association, American Automobile Association and WalletHub research.

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